Stockholm assault suspect was refused residency

Police wished to talk to this man – a suspect matching his description was later arrested

The suspect behind the Stockholm truck assault had been going through deportation and had extremist sympathies, Swedish police say.

The 39-year-old Uzbek man is suspected of getting pushed a truck right into a division retailer within the metropolis on Friday.

His utility for residency was rejected in June final yr and he was being sought by immigration officers, police mentioned.

In the meantime, a second suspect has been positioned beneath formal arrest.

Reuters information company mentioned it was on “a decrease diploma of suspicion” than the primary suspect.

The primary suspect had been given 4 weeks to depart the nation in December 2016, police chief Jonas Hysing advised a press convention. The suspect then disappeared, and police started trying to find him, Mr Hysing added.

4 persons are confirmed to have died within the assault – two Swedish nationals, a Briton and a Belgian, however police haven’t launched their identities. One other 15 individuals had been injured.

The truck, hijacked from a beer firm, was pushed into Ahlens division retailer within the capital on Friday afternoon.

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AFP/Getty Pictures

Picture caption

A whole bunch of individuals have gathered for a vigil towards terrorism in Stockholm

The primary suspect, who has not been named, was recognized to the safety providers and was arrested in a while Friday.

He had been seen solely as a “marginal character”, Nationwide Police Commissioner Dan Eliasson mentioned.